Once everyone had taken their seats, White Ghost spoke bluntly.
"Go on. What do you want? Don't waste time."
Under normal circumstances, White Ghost would never have used that tone.
But he had no choice.
Both sides of his waist were being pinched.
Ilena was one thing.
Ain had actually started using Haki.
He needed to resolve this quickly, before these women completely flipped their vinegar jars over.
The little squirrel and Stella said nothing, but White Ghost wasn't blind. He could see the strange look in their eyes.
Uta and Kuina's expressions had also changed—especially after they saw Arya's face.
Arya, meanwhile, seemed to be thoroughly enjoying White Ghost's predicament.
Deliberately stirring the pot, she even gave him a wink and stuck out her little tongue.
Hiss—
White Ghost felt his waist hurt even more.
Ilena really seemed to have started grasping Ryuo.
The two women still had a sense of proportion, though. They released him and sat down on either side of White Ghost, waiting to see what exactly those two people across from them wanted.
Leonardo pulled out a letter from inside his clothes. His expression was extremely unpleasant as he handed it over.
White Ghost took the letter and frowned, but didn't open it right away. Instead, he looked directly at Leonardo.
Leonardo drew in a deep breath, forcing down the expression on his face.
If he kept making that kind of face in front of this man, then White Ghost would probably lose his temper on the spot.
"This is a letter from our Grand Elder.
"And from the mother of both me and Arya."
White Ghost gave the siblings a suspicious look.
Arya was still carrying a small bundle on her back, which was one of the reasons the women present were so displeased.
White Ghost opened the letter and glanced at it.
There was barely anything written.
Just a few words.
I entrust the most beautiful girl of the elf race to you. Do not fail the expectations of the elves.
White Ghost's brows knotted tightly, and he immediately put the letter away.
This absolutely could not be seen by the women beside him, or they would explode on the spot.
He looked at Leonardo, then at Arya, running through possible reasons in his head.
It didn't take long before he asked in confusion, "Why don't you join the World Government? Or those rats? I don't believe they never approached you."
Leonardo's fists clenched so tightly the veins stood out, his face dark.
"Those rats want too much, and they have thick skins.
"The World Government wants even more, and their skin is even thicker."
A sly smile slowly spread across White Ghost's lips as he spoke in a low voice.
"I think you're placing bets on all three sides."
Leonardo raised his head, eyes bloodshot, while Arya lowered hers.
White Ghost held Leonardo's gaze, his fingers lightly tapping the armrest of his chair.
"That girl boarding my ship is one share.
"You staying here is one share with those rats.
"And as for the last share—"
He didn't continue.
The rest wouldn't sound good no matter how he phrased it.
Leonardo ground his teeth together and stared at White Ghost, speaking word by word.
"Then… what… is… your… answer?"
White Ghost closed his eyes.
When he opened them again, they had already turned into golden dragon eyes.
A wave of dragon's might burst out and slammed straight into the two siblings opposite him.
Whoosh—
Leonardo instantly flashed in front of his sister, gritting his teeth as he tried to resist the terrifying pressure. The red in his eyes began to fade away.
White Ghost rose to his feet, narrowed his eyes, and intensified the dragon's pressure as he walked over to the two of them, who were already drenched in sweat.
He lowered his head and looked down at them with open disdain.
"You're just one elf race.
"Did you really think I'd lose my mind over every pretty woman I saw?
"I don't lack women."
With that, White Ghost withdrew his pressure and looked at the siblings, who had both collapsed weakly to the floor.
"I don't know why you're so unhappy.
"But go back and tell that so-called Grand Elder that if she wants to place bets, don't place them on me.
"I only want to live my own life in peace. Don't drag that kind of crap to my door.
"I can't afford to climb high enough for the elf race."
Then he looked at Leonardo coldly.
"And don't stand in front of me wearing that humiliated expression of yours."
White Ghost waved a hand.
"See yourselves out."
The two siblings flew through the night sky with cold limbs and numb fingers.
Arya stared blankly ahead, her eyes empty.
"Brother… were we too full of ourselves?"
Leonardo thought back on the two times they had met White Ghost and could only give a bitter laugh.
"Yeah. We were far too full of ourselves.
"The way we handled this…
"It was like we saw promise in him and decided to toss you at him as charity.
"Heh. And I even stood in front of him acting like that.
"Now that I think about it, that man defeated Kaido and snatched away the title of strongest creature.
"And in the East Blue not long ago, he almost killed a peak powerhouse."
Arya lowered her head as well.
That man's pressure just now had nearly crushed her to death.
That suffocating feeling—the trembling in the depths of her heart—
She never wanted to experience it again.
"What do we do now?" Arya asked quietly.
Leonardo drew in a deep breath and steadied himself.
"We go back and tell Mother first.
"This matter is already far more complicated than we thought.
"That man doesn't want to step into this muddy water.
"Let's see what Mother says."
"Alright."
Arya nodded.
The two siblings then began flying at full speed through the high night sky.
Back on White Ghost's side, he stood alone beneath the night sky, lazily staring upward while thinking.
Ever since coming into this world, all I ever wanted was to grow stronger.
Stronger and stronger.
Until the day no one would dare touch me casually ever again.
At that point, I could take my women and my crew, hide away somewhere, and just sit back while the outside world tore itself apart.
But as time passed, more and more things drifted off course.
Fish-Man Island can't be separated from me anymore.
Not when my woman is there.
What happened last time was probably because of Fish-Man Island too.
Damn it.
Do they all really think I'm easy to bully and won't hit back?
White Ghost's expression turned dark.
The World Government.
Lampfire.
Pirates.
The underworld.
And now you people too—the ones who've hidden away for centuries over a damn empty promise.
White Ghost clenched his teeth.
If you all want to play, then I'll play with you properly.
Isn't it just about throwing everything into chaos?
I've already prepared my escape route. Why the hell would I be afraid?
The Float-Float Fruit appeared in his hand, and White Ghost's expression grew terrifyingly cold.
"If you want to die... I'll grant it."
He took out a Den Den Mushi and dialed.
The person on the other side probably hadn't gone to sleep yet.
Bero bero bero bero...
The snail rang for a while.
Click.
The Den Den Mushi's face shifted, mimicking the person on the other side, a face marked with cross-shaped tattoos.
White Ghost didn't waste time.
"How was that batch of weapons last time?"
Dragon said nothing.
He was waiting for White Ghost to continue.
This man never contacted him without a reason.
"I've got some new toys here. Not just weapons—new medicine too.
"Medicine that can drive Zoans into a berserk state, with very small side effects.
"Interested, Dragon?"
White Ghost smoked his cigar and looked up at the sky, completely unhurried.
Dragon's side lacked everything.
Especially weapons.
Whenever Franky wasn't busy modifying ships, he was either making guns or making cannons.
The quantities weren't huge, but they were all genuine weapons.
"Is Kuma still doing the trade?" Dragon finally asked in a low voice.
White Ghost sounded unconcerned.
"If you're not worried about the weapons getting intercepted halfway, then I don't care."
"I understand."
Dragon ended the call.
Then he stepped out of his room and looked into the night.
He had heard it clearly.
White Ghost was suppressing something.
Or rather—suppressing anger.
Dragon had seen those new weapons in the papers.
All kinds of them. Tremendous power.
Especially the grenade launcher.
He had thought about trying to reproduce them himself, but the materials were a problem.
The versions they made would explode after only a couple of uses.
One or two weapons might not be enough to hurt a top fighter.
But what about dozens?
What if dozens of them all opened fire on one Vice Admiral-level target at the same time?
Wouldn't that give even a Marine HQ Vice Admiral a splitting headache?
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